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ANTHROPOLOGICAL  PAPERS 


OF    THE 


American  riuseum  of  Natural 
History. 


Vol.  XI,  Part  X. 


DANCES  AND  SOCIETIES  OF  THE  PLAINS 
SHOSHONE. 


BY 
ROBERT  H.  LOW1E, 


NEW  YORK: 

Published  by  Order  of  the  Trustees. 

1915. 


American  Museum  of  Natural   History, 

PUBLICATIONS  IN  ANTHROPOLOGY. 


In  1906  the  present  series  of  Anthropological  Papers  was  authorized  by  the 
Trustees  of  the  Museum  to  record  the  results  of  research  conducted  by  the  Depart- 
ment of  Anthropology.  The  series  comprises  octavo  volumes  of  about  350  pages 
each,  issued  in  parts  at  irregular  intervals.  Previous  to  1906  articles  devoted  to 
anthropological  subjects  appeared  as  occasional  papers  in  the  Bulletin  and  also  in 
the  Memoir  series  of  the  Museum.  A  complete  list  of  these  publications  with  prices 
will  be  furnished  when  requested.  All  communications  should  be  addressed  to  the 
Librarian  of  the  Museum. 

The  recent  issues  are  as  follows: — 


Volume  X. 

I.  Chipewyan  Texts.     By  Pliny  Earle  Goddard.     Pp.  1-66.     1912.     Price, 
$1.00. 

II.  Analysis  of  Cold  Lake  Dialect,  Chipewyan.     By  Pliny  Earle  Goddard. 
Pp.  67-170,  and  249  text  figures.     1912.     Price,  $1.00. 

III.  Chipewyan  Tales.     By  Robert  H.  Lowie.     Pp.  171-200.     1912.     Price, 
$.25. 

I V .  (In  preparation) . 

Volume  XI. 

I.     Societies  and  Ceremonial  Associations  in  the  Oglala  Division  of  the  Teton 
Dakota.     By  Clark  Wissler.     Pp.  1-99,  and  7  text  figures.     1912.     Price,  $.50. 

II.     Dance  Associations  of  the  Eastern  Dakota.     By  Robert  H.  Lowie.     Pp. 
101-142.     1913.     Price,  $.25. 

III.  Societies  of  the  Crow,  Hidatsa  and  Mandan  Indians.     By  Robert  II.  Lowie. 
Pp.  143-358  and  18  text  figures.     1913.     Price,  $2.00. 

IV.  Societies  and  Dance  Associations  of  the  Blackfoot  Indians.     By  Clark 
Wissler.     Pp.  363-460,  and  29  text  figures.     1913.     Price,  $1.00. 

V.     Dancing  Societies  of  the  Sarsi  Indians.     By  Pliny  Earle  Goddard.     Pp. 
461-474.     1914.     Price,  $.25. 

VI.     Political  Organization,  Cults,  and  Ceremonies  of  the  Plains-Ojibway  and 
Plains-Cree   Indians.     By  Alanson  Skinner.     Pp.   475-542,   and   10  text  figures. 

1914.  Price,  $.75. 

VII.     Pawnee   Indian  Societies.     By  James  R.   Mifrie.     Pp.  543-^644,  and   18 
text  figures.     1914.     Price,  $1.00. 

VIII.     Societies  of  the  Ankara  Indians.     By  Robert    11.  Lowie.     Pp.  645-678. 

1915.  Price,  $.50. 

IX.  Societies  of  the  Iowa.  Kansa,  ;m<l   Ponca  Indians.       By  Alanson  Skinner. 
Pp.  ()7(.KS()l.  and  5  text  figures      1915.     Price,  81.00. 

X.  Dances  and  Societies  of  the  Plains  Shoshone.    ByRbberi  II.  Lowie.    Pp. 
8Q8-835.     1916.     Price,  $.25. 

XI.     (In  preparation). 

(.Continued   on   Sd   p.    of  cover.) 


ANTHROPOLOGICAL  PAPERS 


OF   THE 


American  riuseum  of  Natural 
History. 


Vol.  XI,  Part  X. 


DANCES  AND  SOCIETIES  OF  THE  PLAINS 
SHOSHONE, 


BY 

ROBERT  H.  LOWIE. 

)| 


NEW  YORK: 

Published  by  Order  of  the  Trustees. 

1915. 


DANCES  AND  SOCIETIES  OF  THE  PLAINS  SHOSHONE. 
By  Robert  H.  Lowie. 


fsXjjai.i 


PREFACE. 

From  the  beginning  it  had  been  intended  to  include  those  Shoshonean 
tribes  who  had  been  more  or  less  affected  by  the  culture  of  the  Plains  in  the 
present  survey  of  the  military  societies  of  that  area.  Accordingly,  I  devoted 
a  portion  of  the  summer  of  1912  to  seeking  relevant  data  from  the  Comanche, 
Southern  Ute,  and  Wind  River  Shoshone.  The  Comanche  were  visited 
in  the  vicinity  of  Lawton,  Oklahoma;  the  Southern  Ute  at  Navaho  Springs 
and  Ignacio,  Colorado;  the  Shoshone  at  Wind  River,  Wyoming.  In  1914, 
a  brief  visit  was  paid  to  the  Ute  of  WThiterocks,  Uintah  Reservation,  Utah. 

While  the  information  is  meager  for  all  of  the  tribes  concerned,  I  feel 
reasonably  sure  that  this  is  largely  due  to  the  relative  simplicity  of  Sho- 
shonean culture  and  that  the  essential  features  of  the  Ute  and  Wind  River 
dances  are  correctly  represented.  I  am  much  less  confident  as  regards  the 
Comanche,  who  proved  poor,  and  in  part  very  unwilling,  informants. 

For  the  pictures  of  the  Bear  dance,  as  well  as  for  innumerable  courtesies 
during  my  brief  stay  at  Navaho  Springs,  I  feel  under  deep  obligations  to 
Mr.  and  Mrs.  Charles  D.  Wagner. 

March,  1915. 


805 


CONTENTS. 


PREFACE  .  .  . 
COMANCHE  DANCES 
DANCES  AND  SOCIETIES  OF  THE  WIND  RIVER 

The  Yellow  Noses  and  the  Logs 

Foolish  One  ., 

Hai  Noqai 

Xaroya  . 

wohonoqin     . 

Banda  Noqai 

Bead-Gathering 

Pitcemonoqa 

Akwi  Noqai    . 

War  Dances 

Peqowa  Noqan 

Women's  Da 

Tasayuge 
UTE  DANCES       . 

Dog  Company 

Bear  Dance 

Squaw  Dances 

War  Dances 

Panatsuniqai 

Horse  Parade 


SHOSHONE 


Page. 

805 
809 
813 
813 
816 
816 
817 
818 
818 
819 
819 
819 
820 
821 
821 
822 
823 
823 
823 
832 
833 
834 
834 


ILLUSTRATIONS. 
Text  Figures. 

1.  Ute  Bear  Dance  Enclosure  at  Navaho  Springs,  Colorado  .        .        .      826 

2.  Notched  Sticks  and  Rasps  used  as  Musical  Instruments  in  the  Ute  Bear 

Dance     .............  828 

3.  Ute  Bear  Dance  at  Navaho  Springs,  Colorado 830 

4.  Ute  Bear  Dance 830 

5.  Ute  Bear  Dance 831 


807 


COMANCHE  DANCES. 

The  dances  of  the  Comanche  seem  to  have  been,  at  least  to  some  extent, 
associated  with  their  bands.  These  were  purely  local  divisions  that  had 
nothing  to  do  with  the  regulation  of  marriage.  Of  the  fairly  large  number 
listed  by  Mr.  Mooney,1  my  informants  recollected  only  the  following  four 
bands : — 

Yapaire  ka',  Yampa-eaters,  north  of  the  other  Comanche; 

Kwa'are,  Antelopes,  in  part  of  Oklahoma  and  Colorado,  and  the  pan- 
liandle  section  of  Texas; 

Xokoni,  or  Noyeka,  Travelers,  in  the  mountainous  regions  of  Oklahoma; 

Pe'nate  ka,  Honey,  or  Wasp-eaters,  living  toward  the  Rio  Grande. 

Of  these  bands,  the  Yapaire  ka  is  correlated  with  the  Crow  dance  (towl 
no'o'ka);  the  Kwa'are,  with  the  Colt  (tirewo  ku-no'6'ka)  and  the  Horse 
dance;  the  Nokoni  and  the  Pdnate^ka,  with  the  swift-fox  (wo'tsi2  n6°'ka) 
dance.  The  Buffalo  dance  (a'ano'kar)  was  the. common  property  of  all 
the  bands,  but  each  band  performed  it  by  itself. 

The  only  earlier  account  of  Comanche  dances  known  to  me  is  by  Clark. 
After  listing  the  Swift  Fox,  Gourd,  Raven,  Buffalo  Bull,  and  Afraid-of- 
Xothing  societies,  he  states: — 

"The  Comanche  have  five  bands,  and  claimed  that  the  difference  is  in  the  dances 
prior  to  getting  up  a  war-party."  In  another  place  he  writes:  "The  Comanches 
have  the  Raven,  Buffalo  Bull,  Swift  Fox, —  all  war-dances, —  and  Dance  of  Fear, 
with  shields  and  lances,  when  they  expect  an  attack;  Turkey-Dance,  imitating  mo- 
tions of  turkeys.  The  Deer-Dance  might  be  called  the  juggler 's-dance,  as  the  dancers 
pretend  to  swallow  red  beans  and  then  draw  them  out  through  the  breast."  3 

On  the  whole,  I  certainly  received  the  impression  that  dances  were,  at 
least  preferentially,  associated  with  definite  bands.  One  informant,  how- 
ever, denied  any  such  correlation.  According  to  him,  the  Comanche,  in 
war  times,  were  organized  in  different  companies,  which  he  compared  with 
subdivisions  of  a  regiment  of  soldiers.  He  enumerated  the  Crow,  Fox, 
Drum,  Big  Horse,  and  Little  Horse  companies.  If  nothing  unusual  hap- 
pened, a  man  would  remain  true  to  the  division  he  had  first  chosen,  but 
there  was  no  special  bond  of  friendship  between  members  of  the  same 
company. 

1   Handbook  of  North  American  Indiana,  article  "Comanche." 
1  Another  informant  said  this  was  a  swift  bird. 
»  Clark.  355.  141. 

809 


810  Anthropological  Papers  American  Museum  of  Natural  History.  [Vol.  XI, 

If  I  correctly  interpret  the  somewhat  confused  accounts  of  several  in- 
formants, the  dances  mentioned  were  performed  mainly,  or  perhaps  even 
exclusively,  in  connection  with  a  festival,  of  possibly  several  weeks*  duration, 
called  na'wapina  r.  This  term  was  interpreted  to  indicate  a  challenge  to 
the  enemy  and  a  calling  of  volunteers.  At  all  events,  the  ceremony  origi- 
nated through  the  invitation  of  a  man  who  had  lost  a  son  through  some 
hostile  tribe  or  had  suffered  some  other  injury  at  the  hands  of  the  enemy 
that  called  for  revenge.  Such  a  man  would  select  a  site  for  a  general  as- 
semblage, summon  his  tribesmen  to  take  part  in  a  na'wapina  r,  and  pass 
a  pipe  from  one  guest  to  another  by  way  of  bespeaking  their  aid.  In  general 
he  assumed  the  part  of  master  of  ceremonies. 

There  was  a  procession  in  which  the  war  chiefs,  rarely  numbering  more 
than  six,  took  part.  Some  were  on  horseback.  The  most  renowned  war- 
rior came  last  in  the  line.  Musicians  who  drummed  and  sang  accompanied 
the  marchers.  The  renowned  captain  called  a  halt,  and  three  times  pre- 
tended to  fix  his  lance  into  the  ground  before  actually  doing  so.  When  he 
finally  stuck  it  in,  the  musicians  at  once  beat  their  drums.  Then  the  drum- 
mers made  remarks,  and  the  captain  told  of  the  injury  experienced  by  the 
tribe.  The  march  was  then  resumed,  and  after  a  while  the  man  ranking 
next  to  the  famous  warrior  repeated  the  performance  described. 

During  the  entire  period  of  the  na'wapina  r  it  seems  that  the  several 
dances  alternated. 

The  Buffalo  (or  horn)  dance,  which  could  be  performed  by  any  of  the 
bands,  was  declared  by  one  informant  to  have  been  the  greatest  of  all  the 
dances.  During  its  performance  anyone  having  a  horned  bonnet  would 
wear  it.  The  dancers  were  lined  up  in  a  row  and  would  advance  a  consid- 
erable distance  in  the  dance  step.  Ahead  of  them  was  a  line  of  mounted 
men,  while  behind  them  came  a  row  of  musicians,  and  behind  these  the 
group  of  spectators,  including  women,  ranged  in  the  arc  of  a  circle. 

The  Crow  dance  was  generally  regarded  by  my  informants  as  the 
exclusive  property  of  the  Yapaireka  band.  The  performers  marched 
through  the  entire  camp,  two  abreast,  with  an  officer  on  either  side,  armed 
with  a  heavy  war  club  with  a  wrist  loop  of  swift-fox  skin,  decorated  with 
tassels.  The  officers  deputized  certain  men  to  act  as  guards  during  the 
procession.  The  best  dancers  took  the  lead.  After  having  proceeded 
some  distance,  they  halted  to  form  the  arc  of  a  circle.  Then  the  dance 
began.  At  first  possibly  only  one  couple  would  advance,  then  others  fol- 
lowed. The  dancers  imitated  the  motions  of  a  crow.  The  managers  would 
stop  the  dance  after  a  while  and  tell  about  the  war  that  was  to  follow  the 
na'wapina  r  or  make  some  other  announcement  of  general  interest,  at  the 
same  time  going  through  some  motions  while  the  drummers  were  beating 


1915.]  Lowie,  Shoshone  Societies.  811 

their  drums.  There  was  a  strict  rule,  that  no  dog  must  run  ahead  of  the 
performers  lest  it  be  shot;  so  women  would  bid  their  children  take  care  of 
any  dogs  they  prized.  Sometimes,  however,  a  man  who  specially  liked  his 
dog  might  be  asked  to  sacrifice  it  on  this  occasion.  This  taboo  may  have 
been  common  to  several  groups  of  dancers,  but  dogs  were  certainly  espe- 
cially offensive  to  those  of  the  Crow  division. 

During  any  of  the  dances  the  managers  would  threaten  to  strike  laggards 
with  clubs. 

About  the  other  dances  I  was  only  able  to  learn  that  the  Horses  and  Little 
Horses  wore  buffalo-skin  sashes  that  lacked  the  slit  found  elsewhere,  and 
used  rawhide  rattles,  decorated  with  yellow-hammer  feathers;  the  Horses 
also  had  spears,  trimmed  with  eagle  feathers. 

When  the  master  of  the  na'wapinar  had  decided  that  the  time  for  action 
had  arrived,  he  caused  the  dancing  to  cease  and  had  the  Comanche  prepare 
for  the  warpath.  On  the  night  before  setting  out  the  tribesmen  assembled, 
coming  in  pairs  toward  the  front  and  in  single  file  behind.  Then  occurred 
the  ceremony  called  niotsait'.  The  women  brought  a  buffalo  hide  and 
>ticks.  Some  men  held  up  one  side  of  the  hide,  while  the  women  held  the 
opposite  side,  and  all  belabored  it  with  the  sticks,  a  special  song  being  intoned 
by  the  master  alone  and  taken  up  by  the  rest.1 

On  the  next  day  the  Comanche  started  against  the  enemy,  led  by  the 
master.  They  appointed  scouts  to  determine  the  hostile  tribe's  position. 
On  their  return  buffalo  chips  were  piled  up,  and  the  leader  went  in  front  of 
the  heap  to  sing  a  war  song.  The  pile  of  chips  represented  a  sort  of  oath 
to  the  effect  that  the  enemy's  camp  was  really  situated  in  the  place  specified, 
and  also  marked  a  spot  for  the  Comanche  to  return  to.  After  a  successful 
raid  public  thanks  were  rendered  to  those  who  had  avenged  the  injury. 
Scalps  were  set  on  a  pole  and  carried  aloft  by  the  main  chief  as  he  rode 
ahead  on  the  return  trip.  His  body  was  stripped  to  the  waist  and  painted 
black.  War  songs  were  chanted  and  guns  were  discharged  as  the  party 
came  back.  Those  who  had  remained  in  camp  saw  the  scalp  and  knew  that 
the  injury  had  been  avenged. 

A  number  of  questions  were  asked  to  determine  traces  of  typical  elements 
of  military  societies  as  found  among  the  Plains  tribes.  In  reply  to  one  of 
these  queries  I  was  told  that  some  warriors  had  hooked  sticks  with  a  long 
spear  point  at  the  bottom,  the  bent  part  being  decorated  with  two  pairs  of 
eagle  feathers.  I  could  not  ascertain  that  these  regalia  were  correlated 
with  a  special  tribal  division  or  dance.     Again,  I  learned  that  there  were 


1  This  ceremony  has  been  noted  among  the  Nez  Perc6,  Lemhi  Shoshone,  and  Crow. 
The  last-mentioned  tribe  borrowed  it  from  the  (Wind  River)  Shoshone. 


812  Anthropological  Papers  American  Museum  of  Natural  History.  [Vol.  XI, 

formerly  certain  "  dauntless  men/'  called  pia  re'kap  e'kapit  (Large  Red 
Buffalo  Meat),  but  these,  too,  were  not  associated  with  a  special  group. 
They  were  expected  to  act  very  quietly  and  practise  uncommunicativeness 
(naiimeapaiet).  One  of  them,  who  was  killed  by  the  Navajo,  had  a  blue  or 
some  other  cross  painted  on  his  quiver,  and  carried  a  singular  tomahawk  with 
long  blade  and  eagle  feather  tied  to  the  handle.  There  was  nothing  dis- 
tinctive about  the  dress  worn  by  these  dauntless  men. 

In  connection  with  the  buffalo  hunt  there  does  not  seem  to  have  been  any 
police  body,  and  though  the  tribesmen  were  warned  not  to  advance  ahead 
of  their  fellows,  the  only  punishment  meted  out  to  offenders  was  to  reprove 
them.  On  the  other  hand,  the  Big  Horse  company  does  seem  to  have  regu- 
lated traveling.  They  had  no  other  political  function  except  to  act  as 
guides  when  the  Comanche  were  on  the  march  and  to  make  peace  with  other 
tribes.  Wakini  said  that  the  Big  Horses  numbered  about  twenty  and  were 
always  mature  men.  They  had  a  distinctive  song,  but  never  danced  by 
themselves.  They  painted  their  bodies  red,  down  to  the  waist,  and  tied 
hawk  and  sparrowhawk  feathers  to  the  back  of  the  head,  so  that  these  would 
flutter  as  their  wearers  moved.  They  carried  dewclaw  rattles  and  wore  a 
sash  made  from  a  part  of  the  skin  of  a  buffalo  taken  from  its  neck. 


1915.]  Lowie,  Shoshone  Societies.  813 


DANCES  AND  SOCIETIES  OF  THE  WIND  RIVER  SHOSHONE. 
The  Yellow  Noses  and  the  Logs. 

The  Wind  River  Shoshone  had  at  least  one  institution  that  clearly  corre- 
sponds to  a  typical  feature  of  the  Plains  Indian  societies.  Whenever  the 
tribe  was  on  the  march  or  engaged  in  a  communal  hunt,  two  bodies  of  men 
directed  the  movements  of  the  people  and  were  invested  with  special  politi- 
cal functions.  On  such  occasions  the  rank  and  file  of  the  Shoshone  were 
preceded  by  a  group  of  about  twenty  or  thirty  men,  called  oho  mii'pe, 
literally  "Yellow  Noses  or  Mouths,"  but  commonly  interpreted  to  mean 
Yellow  Foreheads."  Approximately  equal  in  number,  but  forming  the 
rear  of  the  procession  came  the  wo'bine,  "Logs."  Some  of  my  informants 
referred  to  these  divisions  by  different  names.  The  Logs  were  several  times 
spoken  of  as  "  Big  Horses,"  while  for  the  term  "  Yellow  Noses"  some  inform- 
ants substituted  haihe,  an  untranslated  word.  Others  explained  that  the 
haihe  were  simply  scouts  chosen  by  both  the  Yellow  Noses  and  the  Logs. 

The  Yellow  Noses  cut  their  hair  short,  with  a  square  bang,  which  they 
plastered  with  yellow  clay.  The  Logs  parted  their  hair  in  the  middle,  and 
wore  a  braid  on  each  side,  wrapped  with  weasel  (or  some  other)  skin. 

Entrance  into  these  companies  was  not  dependent  on  purchase  and  there 
was  no  age  qualification.  Bi'vo  said  that  membership  was  hereditary  in 
the  male  line,  and  that  he  himself  had  belonged  to  the  Yellow  Noses  like 
his  father  before  him.  However,  this  is  contrary  to  statements  of  other 
witnesses,  and  indeed  contradicts  his  own  report  of  a  novice's  admission. 
So  far  as  I  can  see,  any  one  who  so  chose  might  become  a  member  of  either 
body,  though  the  Yellow  Noses  were  expected  to  be  especially  brave.  If  a 
man  had  an  elder  brother  or  friends  in  one  of  the  two  companies,  he  was 
likely  to  follow  their  example.  Sometimes  the  societies  asked  a  man  to 
join.  When  the  Yellow  Noses  gave  a  dance,  their  two  headmen  might  say, 
"So-and-so  is  looking  on,  he  is  brave  and  shall  join  us  if  he  is  willing." 
Then  they  would  ask  him,  and  if  he  meant  to  give  an  affirmative  answer, 
he  would  say,  "No,"  and  vice  versa,  for  it  was  a  peculiarity  of  the  Yellowr 
Noses  to  use  "inverted  speech."  If  he  had  signified  his  willingness  in  the 
manner  explained,  they  cut  his  hair  and  thus  made  him  a  member.  A 
prospective  Log  did  not  use  "inverted  speech"  when  asked  to  join.  In  the 
case  of  a  new  Yellow  Nose,  one  of  the  headmen  merely  cut  his  hair  roughly 
after  the  fashion  of  the  society,  which  was  called  "  branding"  a  new  member. 


814  Anthropological  Papers  American  Museum  of  Natural  History.  [Vol.  XI, 

Afterward  when  at  home,  the  novice  had  his  hair  arranged  more  elaborately. 
This  form  of  hairdress  was  always  adhered  to,  not  merely  in  dancing.  In 
one  case  mentioned  by  Bi'vo  a  novice  refused  to  have  his  hair  cut  square,  so 
one  of  the  headmen  got  another  man  to  recite  his  deeds,  and  thus  the  candi- 
date was  absolved  from  the  haircut.  The  headmen  were  usually  older 
than  the  rest  and  had  attained  distinction  as  warriors,  but  the  tribal  chief 
belonged  to  neither  organization.  Mo'wo  said  that  the  headmen  of  the 
Yellow  Noses  wore  buffalo  robes  fringed  at  the  bottom. 

It  was  possible  for  a  man  to  leave  one  society  and  join  the  other.  If  a 
man  could  not  get  along  with  some  fellow-member  and  desired  to  resign 
from  the  society,  he  was  expected  to  inform  its  herald,  who  would  make 
public  announcement  of  the  fact.  Bi'vo  said  that  in  such  a  case  the  resign- 
ing member  would  have  to  pay  the  chief  a  blanket  or  horse,  or  some  other 
property;  but  this  is  denied  by  other  informants.  If  a  man  did  not  feel 
sufficiently  brave  to  remain  with  the  Yellow  Noses,  he  would  tell  the  other 
members  and  withdraw;  a  long  time  after  he  might  perhaps  join  the  Logs. 

There  was  no  rivalry  between  the  two  societies.  It  is  clear  that  the 
Yellow  Noses  enjoyed  a  higher  social  position  on  account  of  their  bravery, 
and  in  a  sense  the  Logs  were  even  definitely  subordinated  to  them.  For 
example,  the  Yellow  Noses  would  sometimes  give  a  dance  at  night  and  say, 
"Tonight  we  shall  detail  two  or  three  of  the  Logs  as  scouts  to  locate  the 
buffalo."  Then  the  scouts  would  set  out  to  sight  buffalo  and  report  back 
to  the  camp,  where  all  the  people  got  ready  under  the  directions  of  the 
Yellow  Noses.  On  the  march  the  order  was  that  already  described.  Both 
companies  might  restrain  anyone  trying  to  rush  at  the  buffalo  prematurely, 
but  owing  to  their  position  in  front  this  seems  to  have  been  the  special  duty 
of  the  Yellow  Noses,  who  were  accordingly  called  tirakone,  herders.1 
Ha'wi  said  that  if  a  man  started  for  the  buffalo  before  the  proper  time,  one 
of  the  Big  Horse  (Log)  headmen  would  bring  him  back,  whipping  his  horse 
over  the  head.  He  knew  of  no  case  where  the  offender  offered  resistance; 
should  he  have  done  so,  he  thinks  the  police  would  have  disfigured  his  horse, 
e.  g.,  by  lopping  off  the  ears.  If  a  stampeder  succeeded  in  killing  some  of  the 
game,  the  police  destroyed  his  buffalo  hides,  so  that  he  reaped  no  benefit 
from  his  precipitate  haste.  Naturally  the  Yellow  Noses  were  also  the  ones 
expected  in  the  first  place  to  repel  an  enemy's  attack  from  the  front.  On  the 
other  hand,  it  was  the  special  function  of  the  Logs  to  protect  the  women, 
to  show  them  where  to  put  up  their  lodges,  to  keep  order  in  the  rear,  and  to 
look  out  lest  any  one  be  left  behind;  they  would  also  fix  lodge  poles  for 
the  people  if  some  of  them  were  broken  in  dragging  them  along. 

i  At  Lemhi,  Idaho,  I  learned  that  during  dances  and  hunts  a  chief  was  assisted  by  dira- 
k5'ne,  policemen,  armed  with  quirts.     Lowie,  (d),  208. 


1915.]  Loivie,  Shoshone  Societies.  815 

There  was  a  feeling  that  when  a  Yellow  Nose  had  once  started  he  should 
not  stop  for  anything.  Accordingly,  a  member  would  never  pick  up  any- 
thing he  had  dropped;  any  one  else  might  seize  the  object  and  keep  it. 
If  a  woman  dropped  something  on  the  march  and  tried  to  pick  it  up,  the  Logs 
might  say  to  her,  "  You  belong  to  the  Yellow  Noses,  you  are  not  supposed 
to  pick  up  anything  you  drop." 

Another  distinctive  trait  of  the  Yellow  Nose  company  has  already  been 
noted, —  backward  speech  (na'noma  po'nait).  When  the  first  white  men 
came  to  the  Shoshone  and  asked  the  Yellow  Noses  whether  they  wished  to 
be  friends,  the  answer  was,  "No,"  but  this  meant,  "Yes."  The  members 
of  the  society  would  speak  backward  even  in  their  own  family,  viz.,  "Don't 
give  me  a  cup  of  water."  If  a  young  woman  wished  to  marry  a  Yellow  Nose, 
he  would  refuse  her  offer  when  he  meant  to  accept  and  vice  versa.  When 
the  Shoshone  were  fighting  the  enemy  and  the  chief  desired  the  Yellow  Noses 
to  charge,  he  would  say,  "  Don't  charge  the  enemy."  The  headman  of  the 
society  would  answer,  "  No,  we  shall  not  charge,"  but  at  the  same  time  they 
would  do  so.  If,  on  the  other  hand,  the  chief  bade  them  charge,  they  would 
not  go  at  all. 

The  Yellow  Noses  and  Logs  performed  exactly  the  same  dance,  the 
biepungo  noqa,  Big  Horse  dance,  but  according  to  most  of  my  authorities 
they  generally  performed  it  separately,  joining  only  by  some  special  agree- 
ment when  they  wanted  to  discuss  the  camp  movements  together.  On  such 
occasions  they  put  up  a  very  large  tipi  for  the  dance.  Otherwise,  when  the 
Yellow  Noses  danced,  the  Logs  merely  looked  on,  and  vice  versa.  A  man 
was  not  obliged  to  join  his  fellow-members  in  the  performance;  if  he  pre- 
ferred he  might  remain  a  spectator.  The  dance  had  no  particular  object; 
the  Indians  simply  thought  they  should  feel  better  by  performing  it.  It 
might  be  danced  at  any  season  of  the  year,  but  was  especially  appropriate 
before  setting  out  on  the  buffalo  hunt. 

Ordinarily  the  performance  took  place  in  the  daytime,  beginning  in  the 
morning  or  about  noon  and  terminating  before  sundown.  A  big  buffalo-hide 
tipi  was  set  up  for  the  occasion,  and  one  or  two  of  the  headmen  went  round 
to  announce  the  dance.  The  bottom  of  the  lodge  cover  was  raised,  so  that 
the  people  could  look  on.  The  women  were  seated  in  a  circle  all  round  the 
circumference  of  the  lodge  and  helped  in  the  singing.  In  the  rear  of  the 
lodge,  but  in  front  of  the  women  stationed  there,  sat  several  musicians,  the 
best  singers  from  the  dancing  company,  equipped  with  hand-drums.  In 
front  of  the  musicians  were  the  dancers.  There  was  no  difference  between 
the  songs  of  the  two  societies;  there  was  no  meaning  to  the  words  sung. 
Several  informants  said  that  the  step  was  nearly  or  quite  like  that  of  the 
tasayuge  (see  p.  822).     This  statement  seems  at  first  irreconcilable  with  the 


816  Anthropological  Papers  American  Museum  of  Natural  History.  [Vol.  XI, 

general  description  of  the  older  performance  as  a  mere  jumping  up  and  down 
without  change  of  position.  However,  at  Lemhi  I  was  told  that  the  old 
form  of  tasayuge  also  involved  a  mere  dancing  up  and  down.1  When  a 
Big  Horse  song  had  been  intoned,  the  headmen  went  round  with  a  quirt, 
to  make  the  members  present  get  up  and  dance.  At  the  close  of  a  song 
the  dancers  sat  down,  to  rise  again  at  the  next  one.  There  was  no  special 
costume.  Some  men  wore  beaded  leggings  and  buckskin  shirts,  others 
merely  a  breechclout;  there  were  also  individual  differences  in  painting. 
A  dancer  might  carry  a  tomahawk  or  stick  an  eagle  feather  into  his  hair. 
Yellow  Noses  sometimes  wore  a  small  stick  with  beadwork  on  one  side  of 
the  head,  and  a  longer  stick  of  the  same  type  on  the  other.  The  headmen 
had  no  distinctive  badge.  After  the  dance  there  would  be  a  recital  of  war 
deeds.  Finally  came  the  feast,  for  which  a  great  deal  of  wild-carrot  stew 
had  been  prepared.  With  the  distribution  and  eating  of  the  food  the 
performance  came  to  a  close. 

Foolish  One. 

There  was  a  man  associated  neither  with  the  Logs  nor  with  the  Yellow 
Noses.  He  rode  a  horse  with  docked  tail  and  went  through  camp  singing, 
without  any  one  annoying  him.  In  his  hand  he  would  hold  a  spherical  rattle. 
When  the  enemy  were  in  sight  the  Foolish  One  (wi'+  ag*  ait)  advanced  re- 
gardless of  danger,  even  if  a  man  should  aim  a  gun  at  him.  If  the  enemy 
missed  him,  the  Foolish  One  would  rush  upon  him  and  strike  him  with  his 
only  weapons,  a  quirt  and  the  rattle.  After  such  an  exploit  he  might  cease 
to  act  as  a  Foolish  One  and  would  be  acclaimed  as  a  war  chief  for  his 
bravery.  Sometimes  a  man  would  touch  two  or  three  of  the  enemy  before 
retreating.  Any  one  might  become  a  Foolish  One  if  he  considered  himself 
sufficiently  brave  not  to  turn  back  before  striking  an  enemy  in  the  manner 
described.  In  this  undertaking  many  Shoshone  were  slain,  but  others  would 
take  their  place. 

It  is  clear  that  the  Foolish  One  corresponds  closely  to  the  Crazy  Dogs 
of  the  Crow  and  Blackfoot;  and  a  specific  similarity  also  exists  with  a 
Flathead  institution  described  by  Clark.* 


Hai  Noqai. 

During  the  sun  dance  buffalo  tongues  were  strung  together,  hung  from  a 
pole,  the  ends  of  which  rested  on  two  men's  shoulders,  and  carried  inside  a 

i  Lowie,  (d),  p.  222. 
■  Clark,  p.  355  f. 


1915.]  Lowie,  Shoshone  Societies.  817 

lodge.  Then  the  haihe  (see  p.  813)  came  and  imitated  the  noise  and  actions 
of  magpies.  They  would  rush  in,  seize  the  tongues  and  try  to  get  away  with 
them,  while  the  other  Indians  beat  them  off  with  sticks.  This  practice  was 
called  hainoqai. 

Naroya. 

This  is  regarded  as  an  old  dance;  the  meaning  of  the  name  is  obscure. 
According  to  one  informant,  it  is  identical  with  the  a'po  noqa  and  the 
nu'akin;  another  Shoshone  identified  it  with  the  dzo'a  noqa  and  thenadzai 
noqa  of  Idaho.1  The  first-mentioned  authority  gave  the  following  origin 
account : — 

After  the  Father  (a'po)  had  created  the  world,  there  was  a  man  with  his  wife  and 
two  children.  Coyote  came  along  and  said,  "I  am  your  father  and  made  all  these 
hills  and  trees.  Now  I  will  give  you  this  a'pondqa."  So  he  taught  them  the  na'roya 
dance.     Coyote  was  merely  fooling  the  people. 

The  na'roya  might  be  danced  at  any  season  of  the  year.  The  Shoshone 
believe  it  always  keeps  storming  when  the  dance  is  performed;  thus  last 
winter  (1911)  it  was  snowing  all  the  time  because  of  several  performances. 
Any  man  might  give  the  dance  if  some  member  of  his  family  was  smitten 
with  a  cold  or  some  more  serious  disease;  to  drive  this  away  the  performers 
would  shake  their  blankets  at  the  close  of  the  ceremony.  Ha'wi  recalled 
several  instances  where  sick  people  attended  the  dance  and  also  shook  their 
blankets  when  the  headman  bade  the  participants  do  so.  Both  men  and 
women  took  part;  the  men  first  formed  a  circle,  then  each  woman  would 
step  between  two  men,  all  interlocking  fingers.  Sometimes  there  were  so 
many  dancers  that  a  larger  concentric  circle,  or  part  of  one,  had  to  be 
formed.  AVithin  the  (smaller)  circle,  though  not  in  the  center  but  rather 
near  the  circumference,  there  was  a  pine  tree;  this  remained  standing  and 
was  used  for  subsequent  ceremonies.  The  dance  might  be  performed  either 
in  the  daytime  or  at  night;  in  the  latter  case  a  big  fire  was  built  in  the  center 
of  the  circle,  or  sometimes  on  the  outside.  In  the  early  days  the  ceremony 
lasted  five  consecutive  nights,  only  the  final  performance  took  place  in  the 
daytime.  Nowadays  the  Shoshone  only  dance  for  one  or  two  days.  The 
dancers  move  clockwise.  There  is  no  musical  instrument;  the  performers 
move  in  accompaniment  to  their  own  singing.  At  the  close  of  the  ceremony 
all  go  to  take  a  bath. 

*  Cf.  Lowie,  (d),  217-219. 


818  Anthropological  Papers  American  Museum  of  Natural  History.  [Vol.  XI, 


WOHONOQIN. 

This  dance,1  which  was  supposed  to  be  started  by  a  man  born  in  the 
summer,  was  expected  to  bring  warm  weather.  The  Wind  River  Shoshone 
have  not  danced  it  since  the  disappearance  of  the  buffalo;  it  is  an  old  cere- 
mony of  theirs,  though  one  witness  declared  he  did  not  know  whether  it 
originated  with  the  Shoshone  or  the  Ute,  to  whose  Bear  dance  it  obviously 
corresponds.  Indeed,  there  is  another  Shoshone  name  for  it,  a'gwai  noqa, 
which  means  Bear  dance. 

The  ceremony  was  celebrated  about  New  Year's,  in  the  open  air,  without 
any  enclosure.  It  was  danced  for  four  days.  A  hole  was  dug  in  the  ground 
and  covered  with  a  pan  for  a  resonator.  On  top  of  this  were  placed  the 
notched  sticks  (wo'honoki)  serving  as  musical  instruments,  which  were 
rasped  by  five  or  six  musicians  grouped  round  in  a  circle.  The  women  were 
all  on  one  side  of  the  ground  and  would  choose  a  man  partner  from  the  oppo- 
site side.  Two  girls  selected  one  man  to  stand  between  and  facing  them. 
Then  they  would  go  forwards  and  backwards  in  sets  of  three.  At  first 
they  held  up  their  hands  in  imitation  of  a  bear's  paws  and  acted  as  if  afraid 
of  each  other,  but  finally  they  clasped  each  other  and  danced  together. 
The  performance  was  limited  to  the  daytime,  but  was  danced  on  four  con- 
secutive days.  On  the  last  day  only  two  performers  participated,  the  giver 
of  the  dance  being  one  of  them,  otherwise  anyone  who  chose  might  take 
part.  In  one  part  of  the  ceremony  a  man  would  kick  his  partner's  foot  (or 
vice  versa)  causing  her  to  fall.  Then  the  headman,  who  was  naked  save  for 
a  clout,  took  the  resonator  and  musical  instrument  near  the  prostrate  form 
and  made  a  noise  there.  The  fallen  one  would  then  sit  up,  jump  round,  and 
move  his  hands  in  imitation  of  a  bear;  without  this  performance  he  would 
be  liable  to  be  killed  by  a  bear  some  time. 

According  to  one  informant,  the  wo'honoqin  was  always  performed  at 
the  initiative  of  the  same  individual,  and  when  he  died  the  Shoshone  ceased 
to  dance  it. 

Banda  Noqai. 

The  meaning  of  banda  noqai  is  unknown.  The  dance,  though  practised 
by  the  Shoshone  long  ago,  is  associated  in  their  minds  mainly  with  the 
Bannock,  who  according  to  my  authorities  still  keep  it  up  (1912).  Only 
men  took  part.     They  wore  breechclouts  painted  white  and  black  and 

i  Cf.  Lowie,  (d),  p.  219. 


1915.]  Lowie,  Shoshone  Societies.  819 

painted  themselves  all  over  with  black  dots.  Each  had  a  pair  of  very  large 
artificial  testicles  fixed  on,  and  carried  a  bow  and  blunt-headed  arrows.  The 
women  or  other  non-participants  split  sticks,  putting  a  bead  or  other  small 
object  within  the  cleft,  and  set  them  in  front  of  the  dancers.  The  perform- 
ers danced  up  to  the  sticks,  but  pretended  to  retreat  in  fear  until  finally 
they  snatched  them  up.  Before  so  doing  they  would  rush  at  some  specta- 
tors and  pretend  to  shoot  them.  Spectators  were  supposed  to  be  outdoors 
while  looking  at  the  dance;  if  any  one  peeped  through  a  hole  in  the  tipi  cover, 
the  dancers  would  shoot' him.  When  they  had  seized  the  sticks,  some  men 
who  had  water  at  hand  threw  it  at  the  (lancers  as  they  started  away,  so  that 
some  would  get  wet.  The  performers  proceeded  a  short  distance,  then 
danced  again,  and  tapped  bows  and  arrows  together.  Finally,  they  ran  off 
as  fast  as  possible  to  the  place  where  they  had  put  away  their  clothes. 
The  entire  performance  was  merely  a  pastime. 


Bead-G.\t!ikki\<.. 

The  men  chose  a  site  for  the  performers  and  began  to  sing  and  beat 
drums.  The  young  women  would  get  up  and  choose  partners.  A  man  had 
his  arm  and  blanket  round  his  partner,  and  they  would  slightly  raise  the 
feel  above  the  ground  with  a  quick  jump.  Then  they  would  fall  down 
'licr,  whereupon  onlookers  threw  one  blanket  after  another  on  top  of 
them.  While  in  this  position  the  man  presented  his  companion  with  all 
sorts  of  trinkets.  The  blanket-owners  recovered  their  blankets.  The 
ceremony  is  called  nadzo  moyuk. 


PlTCEMONOQA. 

The  meaning  of  pitcemo  noqa  is  unknown.  The  dance  was  performed  at 
night  inside  of  a  lodge.  It  was  danced  only  for  a  short  time.  The  step 
was  like  that  of  the  Wolf  dance.  Men  and  women  both  participated.  One 
dancer  held  the  skin  of  an  animal  in  his  hand. 


Akwi  Xoqai. 

One  or  two  headmen  riding  on  horseback  and  dressed  in  their  best  clothes, 
would  head  a  party  of  dancers  (a'kwi  noqai).  They  would  go  in  front  of  a 
-lodge  and  begin  to  dance  round  while  a  singer  started  a  song,  beating  a  drum. 


820  Anthropological  Papers  American  Museum  of  Natural  History.  [Vol.  XI, 

This  was  done  at  each  lodge  in  succession.  The  inmates  of  the  lodge  would 
join  the  ranks  of  the  dancers,  who  thus  gradually  acquired  a  large  following. 
After  visiting  all  the  lodges,  the  paraders  ended  their  performance. 


War  Dances. 

Long  ago,  when  a  war  party  was  about  to  set  out  they  would  get  a 
blanket  on  the  eve  of  departure  and  beat  it,  saying,  "Tomorrow  we  shall 
go  on  the  warpath."  This  custom  is  called  paraian  by  the  Wind  River 
Shoshone.1 

W'hen  the  scouts  had  discovered  that  the  enemy  was  close  and  came  to 
report  their  presence,  the  chief  would  say :  "  Today  we  will  have  the  Afraid 
dance  (toya  no'qa  roi)."  Then  they  got  a  lot  of  firewood  for  the  evening, 
and  built  a  big  fire.  The  best  singers  acted  as  musicians,  beating  their 
hand-drums,  accompanied  by  women,  while  the  other  men  danced,  merely 
raising  each  leg,  alternately  without  change  of  position.  War-bonnets 
were  worn.  The  performance  lasted  only  a  very  short  time.  According 
to  one  version,  the  men  came  in  on  horseback,  dismounted,  and  danced 
pretending  to  dodge  shots  fired  at  them.  The  dance  was  meant  to  give  a 
warning  to  the  people  as  to  the  proximity  of  their  enemies. 

When  an  enemy  had  been  killed  and  scalped,  the  wutap1  ceremony  was 
held.  Here  five  or  six  men  played  the  part  of  musicians,  standing  up  with 
their  hand-drums,  while  any  women  that  chose  might  take  an  active  part 
in  the  dance.  The  women  all  lined  up  in  a  row  with  the  scalps  at  the  end 
of  their  sticks,  and  danced  toward  the  men.  When  close,  they  stopped, 
walked  to  their  original  places,  and  waited  for  the  next  song,  when  the  same 
procedure  was  repeated.  Usually  they  began  about  ten  o'clock  in  the  morn- 
ing and  ceased  at  three  or  four  in  the  afternoon. 

A  ceremony  called  gani'  wutap,  and  possibly  related  to  that  just  de- 
scribed, was  also  performed  when  an  enemy  had  been  killed.  The  perform- 
ers got  their  best  horses,  tied  up  their  tails,  and  mounted,  a  man  and  a 
woman  riding  double.  Lining  up  abreast  of  one  another,  they  rode  round  the 
camp.  One  of  the  men  carried  a  scalp  at  the  end  of  a  stick,  and  all  sang 
a  war  song  during  the  procession.  They  rode  up  to  a  tipi,  stopped  there, 
struck  it  with  willow  branches,  and  then  stopped. 

The  wutap1  was  followed  by  the  na'wiiya  (r1)  in  which  every  man  stood 
between  two  women,  each  embracing  his  two  partners.  Thus  a  circle  was 
formed,  and  all  the  dancers  walked  slowly  in  a  clockwise  direction.  Drums 
were  beaten  with  a  slow  measure,  and  the  dancers  themselves  also  sanp. 

«  Cf.  p.  811. 


1915.]  Lowie,  Shoshone  Societies.  821 

Finally  came  the  na'rupina'ru.  The  performers  were  young  people,  All 
the  men  lined  up  in  a  row,  facing  another  line  of  women.  Some  (one?) 
of  the  men  beat  drums.  The  women  went  backward,  followed  by  the  men, 
who  continued  to  face  them.  The  men  might  select  any  woman  and  put 
her  on  their  own  side,  and  the  women  had  a  corresponding  privilege.  Thus 
they  walked  for  a  long  distance  in  one  direction.  Then  the  men  began  to 
walk  backwards,  followed  by  the  women.  This  was  done  several  times  until 
some  headman  ordered  them  to  stop,  when  all  would  go  home. 

The  nu'niihan  was  held  when  some  enemies  had  been  slain  by  a  war 
party.  Then  some  eight  or  ten  old  men  and  women  marched  through  camp, 
went  to  the  lodge  of  a  warrior,  who  had  been  of  the  party,  and  sang  there, 
beating  little  sticks.  The  warrior  would  come  out  with  a  fine  buffalo 
blanket  for  the  men  and  some  meat  for  the  old  women.  The  procession 
then  went  on  to  the  lodge  of  another  warrior  and  went  through  the  same 
performance,  until  all  the  members  of  the  successful  expedition  had  been 
visited. 

Peqowa  Noqan. 

In  this  dance  (peq6wa  noqan)  both  sexes  took  part.  The  young  people 
went  into  a  lodge  and  the  men  painted  the  women.  Then  all  went  outside. 
The  women  lined  up  in  one  row,  and  the  men  in  another  row  behind.  They 
walked  to  the  dance  ground,  where  the  women  turned  about  to  face  the  men, 
danced  up  to  them,  and  then  stepped  back  again,  repeating  the  performance 
at  subsequent  songs. 

Then  the  headman  announced  the  a'anoqa.  The  men  stood  still,  beating 
drums,  and  the  women  went  round,  all  abreast. 

There  followed  the  Knee  dance  (tanga  noqa').  The  women  were  in  two 
rows,  facing  each  other,  and  thus  approached  the  men.  When  close,  they 
split  up  into  two  sections  and  wTent  back  to  their  starting  point.1  Then  all 
the  women  formed  a  circle,  and  the  men  got  between  them.  Any  onlooker 
might  join. 

Women's  Dance. 

This  is  a  modern  dance  (waipe  noqa  or  waipe  no'kakin)  that  came  from 
the  Crow,  according  to  one  informant,  and  from  the  south  according  to 
another.     My  interpreter  thought  it  had  been  introduced  not  more  than 


1  The  statement  possibly  means  that  the  women  advanced  in  one  row,  which  broke  up 
into  two  as  they  approached  the  men. 


822  Anthropological  Papers  American  Museum  of  Natural  History.  [Vol.  XI, 

eight  or  ten  years  ago  (in  1912).  It  alternates  with  the  tasayuge  as  among 
the  Lemhi.  There  are  four  or  five  different  singers  with  hand-drums. 
The  women  choose  partners,  and  the  men  must  pay  for  the  privilege  of 
dancing  with  them.1 

Tasayuge. 

Instead  of  using  the  Indian  name,  tasayuge,  the  Whites  call  this  the 
Wolf  dance,  or  sometimes  the  War  dance.2  The  Indians  do  not  connect 
it  with  the  wolf;  one  informant  thought  the  name  might  have  been  derived 
from  the  fact  that  the  headman's  quirt  is  decorated  with  a  coyote  tail. 

As  already  hinted  above,  there  may  be  an  obsolete  form  of  the  dance 
in  which  the  performers  do  not  change  their  position.  The  dance  as  now 
practised  is  certainly  identical  with  the  Grass  dance  of  other  tribes,  though 
the  Shoshone  did  not  eat  dog  meat.  The  performers  wore  war-bonnets 
with  long  streamers  and  feather  bustles.  One  Indian  told  me  that  while 
sick  a  man  from  another  tribe  had  a  dream  in  which  he  was  instructed  to 
perform  the  tasayuge  and  promised  to  get  well.  He  obeyed,  and  recovered. 
The  dance  passed  from  tribe  to  tribe  and  finally  the  Shoshone  are  said  to 
have  obtained  it  from  the  Crow. 


i  Cf.  Lowie.  (d).  p.  221. 
*  Lowie,  (d),  221-223. 


1915. J  Lowie,  Shoshone  Societies.  823 


UTE  DANCES. 
Dog  Company. 

So  far  as  I  understand  conditions  among  the  Ute,  the  Dog  company 
(sari'  tsi  +  u)  is  the  only  institution  comparable  to  the  Plains  societies. 
According  to  Charlie  Buckskin,  this  company  was  not  connected  with  the 
Dog  dance  (p.  833) ;  it  existed  before  my  informant's  time,  in  the  days  before 
the  Ute  had  guns. 

The  Dog  company  consisted  of  a  number  of  men  and  one  woman.  They 
dressed  like  other  people,  but  wore  a  distinctive  necklace  made  from  a  slit 
wolfskin.  Like  dogs,  they  were  to  give  an  alarm  to  the  Ute  whenever  an 
enemy  approached.  Accordingly,  they  went  scouting  round  the  village  in 
the  daytime  and  at  night,  and  if  they  saw  anyone  coming  they  ran  back  to 
camp  to  warn  the  tribe.  Sometimes  they  stayed  on  a  high  hill,  watching 
and  singing  songs.  When  the  camp  moved,  the  Dogs  stayed  in  the  rear; 
when  the  new  site  was  occupied  they  approached.     They  were  always  afoot. 

In  every  way  tin  ried  to  imitate  the  animal  from  which  they 

derived  their  name.  The}'  usually  ate  raw  meat,  and  when  they  bled  from 
a  wound  they  Tried  to  liek  up  the  blood  with  the  tongue  dog-fashion. 

After  the  old  Dog  company  had  disappeared,  the  sole  survivor  revived 
it  for  a  while,  inviting  anyone  who  wished  to  join. 


Bear  Dance. 

The  Bear  Dance  (mamaqunikap') l  is  the  most  important  of  Ute  cere- 
monies. It  was  known  in  the  three  divisions  of  the  tribe  visited  and  has 
been  referred  to  by  earlier  writers.     Thus,  Clark  writes: — 

Their  annual  dance,  which  is  a  religious  ceremony,  generally  takes  place  some 
time  during  the  month  of  February  or  March.  With  willow-boughs  a  large  circular 
enclosure  is  formed,  and  the  ground  within  is  stamped  smooth  and  hard.  Places 
are  set  apart  for  fires,  so  that  the  "dance-hall"  may  be  properly  illuminated.  At 
one  end  is  the  orchestra.  I  will  endeavor  to  give  a  brief  description  of  the  musical 
instrument  used.     A  hole  is  dug  in  the  ground,  and  into  it  is  fitted  snugly  a  large 

1  Also  recorded  as  mamaxuni'kai.  The  native  name  Is  said  to  contain  no  reference  to 
the  bear.  I  do  not  know  whether  this  applies  to  another  name,  kwi+arat  n'kai,  given  by 
Charlie  Buckskin  as  a  synonym  of  the  usual  one. 


824  Anthropological  Papers  American  Museum  of  Natural  History.  [Vol.  XI, 

tin  bucket,  bottom  upwards.  Each  musician  takes  a  stick,  about  eighteen  inches 
long,  notched  from  one  end  to  the  other.  One  extremity  of  this  stick  is  held  in  the 
left  hand,  and  placed  in  contact  with  the  edge  of  the  tin  bucket.  In  the  right  hand 
the  performer  holds  a  small  piece  of  wood,  square  or  rectangular  in  shape,  and 
from  three  to  four  inches  in  thickness,  and  scraping  this  upwards  and  downwards 
on  the  notched  stick,  he  produces  the  ravishing  music  which  so  delights  the  dusky- 
dancers.  The  men  and  the  squaws  arrange  themselves  into  two  lines,  so  that  the 
sexes  stand  opposite  and  facing  each  other.  When  the  music  commences  two  squaws 
clasp  hands,  advance  to  the  male  line,  and  choose  their  partners;  then  two  more  in 
the  same  manner  make  their  selection,  and  so  on  until  all  are  supplied.  Now  the 
males  and  the  females  from  their  respective  lines  advance  towards  each  other  with  a 
trot  and  a  swaying  motion  of  their  bodies,  until  the  couples  are  almost  face  to  face, 
and  then  with  similar  backward  movements  return  to  the  places  from  which  they 
started.  This  alternate  advance  and  retreat  is  all  there  is  to  the  dance,  but  the 
participants  apparently  enjoy  the  exercise  immensely,  and  often  continue  the  dance 
until  they  are  completely  exhausted.  What  are  termed  "Bear-Dances"  are  fre- 
quently indulged  in  merely  for  sport,  they  have  no  religious  significance.1 

The  fullest  account  of  the  Bear  dance  known  to  me  is  that  by  Mr. 
Verner  Z.  Reed,a  who  witnessed  a  performance  in  March,  1893,  in  the  valley 
of  the  Rio  de  los  Pinos.  His  evidence  will  be  drawn  upon  in  the  considera- 
tion of  special  points. 

Of  the  origin  of  the  dance  Severo  (Ignacio)  gave  the  following  account: — 

Long  ago  the  Bear  was  a  person.  He  went  about  alone  and  found  a  cotton  wood 
stump.  He  thought  he  would  dance  toward  the  tree  by  himself,  unseen  by  any  one. 
So  he  danced  back  and  forth,  originating  the  Bear  dance.3  When  he  got  back  to  the 
village  he  announced  the  new  dance  and  began  to  perform  it,  but  though  everybody 
liked  it  the  young  men  were  bashful  and  the  women  merely  sang  in  chorus.  The 
Bear  did  not  like  this,  so  he  appointed  two  leaders  who  should  make  the  men  and 
women  rise  without  tarrying  too  long.  He  said:  "I  want  you  to  have  this  dance 
while  I  am  still  inside  my  house  in  the  winter  time.  I  won't  allow  it  in  the  summer. 
If  you  perform  it  then,  I  shall  be  angry.  Some  people  may  have  it  in  the  winter, 
but  it  will  also  be  well  to  have  it  at  the  beginning  of  spring.  I  shall  be  very  glad 
to  hear  the  songs  from  within  my  house.  It  does  not  matter  how  far  away  I  shall  be 
when  they  perform  the  dance,  I'll  hear  and  rejoice.  You  must  keep  this  up  all  the 
time.  I'll  come  out,  and  be  glad,  and  look  for  a  female  bear  for  a  consort.  If  they 
keep  up  the  dance,  the  leaders  may  announce  the  celebration  to  other  villages  that 
are  far  off,  and  all  may  join.  Do  not  confine  the  dance  to  one  village,  I  like  a  big 
crowd.  We  will  dance  four  days,  then  you  may  have  a  big  feast  within  the  corral, 
and  after  the  feast  go  away."     This  is  why  the  Bear  dance  is  kept  up. 

Jim  Duncan  (Whiterocks)  gave  a  different  version: — 

Long  ago  the  Bear  sang  a  song  for  a  Ute,  showed  him  the  dance,  and  said: 
"'You  shall  dance  this  way.     If  you  teach  the  Indians  how  to  do  this,  they  will  be 

»  Clark,  388-389. 

*  "The  Ute  Bear  Dance,"  American  Anthropologist,  1896,  pp.  237-244. 

»  Cf.  Mason,  p.  363. 


1915.]  Lowie,  Shoshone  Societies.  825 

kind  to  one  another  and  to  their  wives.  The  women  shall  also  join  in  the  dance." 
In  showing  the  dance  to  this  man,  the  Bear  had  no  corral  but  he  told  the  Ute  how  the 
performance  should  be  conducted.  "You  shall  dance  back  and  forth  with  your 
woman  partner,  while  the  others  sit  in  the  rear  and  sing  songs."  The  man  went  to 
teach  his  fellow-tribesmen,  and  the  Bear  watched  him.  The  Indian  had  a  wife, 
and  during  the  performance  she  danced  with  a  young  man.  When  the  dance  was 
over,  the  husband  took  a  club  and  knocked  her  down.  The  Bear  came  and  said 
to  the  man,  "I  did  not  tell  you  to  hurt  your  wife,  I  told  you  to  be  good  and  to  tell 
the  other  Indians  not  to  hurt  their  wives."  He  pulled  the  man  outside  his  lodge  and 
struck  him  with  his  paws.  The  man  howled  and  promised  not  to  hurt  his  wife 
thereafter,  then  the  Bear  let  him  go.  Long  after  this  the  same  man  again  announced 
a  Bear  dance,  and  after  this  second  performance  he  was  kind  to  his  wife.  This  is 
how  the  Bear  dance  began. 

Still  another  version  by  Buckskin  Charlie,  chief  of  the  Ignacio  Ute, 
merits  recording  because  it  connects  the  ceremony  with  Suna/wav1  (Wolf), 
the  mythical  culture  hero: — 

Suna'wav1  told  the  Indians  to  have  a  Bear  dance  in  the  spring,  but  not  in  the 
summer  when  the  Bear  was  out  on  the  mountains  since  then  he  might  fight  anyone 
he  met.  The  time  to  dance  is  while  the  Bear  is  still  asleep.  In  the  spring  the  Fly 
niters  his  dwelling  and  begins  to  buzz  about.  Then  the  Bear  awakes  and  asks, 
"It  is  spring  already,  if  it  not?"  "Yes,  why  do  you  sleep  so  long?  It  is  spring, 
you  had  better  go  out.  It  is  time  for  you  to  scratch  a  person's  face  and  make  him 
look  bad.  Do  that,  as  you  always  do."  "Why,  that's  nothing.  I  only  make  him 
brave,  I  don't  hurt  him.  Now,  you,  when  it  is  hot,  you  always  spoil  meat."  "Oh, 
no,  I  do  that  to  put  salt  on  it,  so  people  can  eat  it." 

When  the  first  thunder  is  heard,  the  Bear  stretches  himself.  Later,  when  there 
is  good  sunshine,  he  comes  out  again.  Suna'wav*  said:  "If  you  celebrate  the  cere- 
mony every  spring,  the  Bear  will  know  it  and  will  not  bother  you  when  you  are  hunt- 
ing in  the  mountains.  If  you  do  not,  he  may  hurt  you.  You  must  always  keep  up 
the  dance.  If  any  one  won't  dance  with  the  woman  who  chooses  him  for  a  partner, 
the  Bear  will  bite  him  and  is  liable  to  kill  him." 

This  is  why  the  Bear  ceremony  is  kept  up. 

Beyond  the  desire  to  conciliate  the  bear,  I  was  unable  to  detect  any 
supposed  object  for  the  performance.  Tony  Buckskin,  my  interpreter  at 
Ignacio,  said  that  the  Navajo  and  Apache  performed  the  Bear  dance  for 
the  purpose  of  curing  the  sick,  but  that  the  Ute  did  not. 

According  to  Reed,  "one  of  the  purposes  of  the  dance  is  to  assist  the 
bears  to  recover  from  hibernation  to  find  food,  to  choose  mates,  and  to 
cast  the  film  of  blindness  from  their  eyes.  Some  of  the  other  motives  of  the 
ceremonies  are  to  charm  the  dancers  from  danger  of  death  from  bears,  to 
enable  the  Indians  to  send  messages  to  their  dead  friends  who  dwell  in  the 
land  of  immortality,  and  one  or  two  minor  ceremonies  are  performed  usually 
for  the  purpose  of  healing  certain  forms  of  sickness."  1 

i  Reed.  p.  238 


826  Anthropological  Papers  American  Museum  of  Natural  History.  [Vol.  XI, 

As  indicated  in  the  origin  accounts  and  in  the  quotation  from  Clark, 
the  Bear  dance  was  properly  celebrated  very  early  in  the  spring.  A  man 
urging  another  to  start  the  dance  would  say,  I  want  to  shoot  your  back 
with  arrows."  Tony  Buckskin  told  me  that  in  former  times  the  death 
of  a  tribesman  shortly  before  the  prospective  performance  would  cause  its 
omission,  but  that  now  such  a  mishap  was  no  longer  considered  as  a  pre- 
ventive. Panayu's  said  that  the  proper  time  for  the  dance  was  when  the 
first  thunder  was  heard  in  the  spring;  if  the  Ute  delayed  its  performance, 
they  greatly  feared  that  people  would  be  killed  by  bears  while  out  in  the 
mountains.  There  were  sometimes  several  performances  of  the  ceremony 
in  the  spring;  in  1912  the  Ute  of  Navaho  Springs  had  two  dances  on  account 
of  the  unfavorable  weather  during  the  first. 


Fig.  1.     Ute  Bear  Dance  Enclosure  at  Navaho  Springs,  Colorado. 

The  Bear  dance  is  held  in  a  very  nearly  circular,  roofless  enclosure. 
Reed  says  it  is  sacred  during  the  performance  and  must  be  kept  free  from 
horses  or  dogs.  The  enclosure  I  saw  at  Navaho  Springs  (Fig.  1)  had  a 
diameter,  according  to  rough  measurements,  of  from  seventy-one  to  seventy- 
nine  feet.  At  distances  of  several  feet  from  one  another  forked  cedar  trees 
had  been  set  in  the  ground  to  form  the  circumference,  and  the  spaces  between 
these  posts  were  filled  with  crossbeams  and  brush,  except  on  the  east  side, 
where  a  space  about  4^  feet  in  width  was  left  for  an  entrance.1  In  the  rear 
I  found  a  round  pit  of  irregular  shape,  about  two  feet  deep  and  three  feet 
wide.  This  marks  the  place  of  the  musicians,  of  whom  Reed  says  not  less 
than  twenty  had  been  drilled  for  the  occasion,  and  from  eight  to  fourteen 
were  constantly  employed  during  the  dance.  In  the  pit  I  found  a  consid- 
erable number  of  notched  instruments  (wu'nurugii  nap,  wti'noro  Enop),  as 

1  According  to  Reed,  the  entrance  was  to  the  south  or  southeast. 


1915.]  Lowie,  Shoshone  Societies.  827 

will  as  several  rasps.  A  few  of  the  instruments  were  also  seen  scattered 
about  the  dance  ground,  but  all  except  one  in  the  immediate  neighborhood 
of  the  pit.  About  two  feet  away  there  was  an  inverted  wash  tub,  and  a 
little  farther  off  a  bottomless  wooden  case.  Max  Joy,  my  interpreter, 
explained  that  during  the  performance  the  tub  was  placed  in  the  pit,  the 
case  over  the  tub,  and  a  sheet  of  tin  on  the  case.  When  the  notched  stick 
is  rasped  on  this  series  of  resonators,  the  noise  produced  is  said  to  be  tre- 
mendous. In  former  times  a  large  basket  took  the  place  of  the  tub.  What 
seemed  to  be  four  drumsticks  were  resting  on  a  horizontal  cedar  log,  just 
south  of  the  pit;  according  to  Max  Joy,  these  had  nothing  to  do  with  the 
Hear  ceremony,  but  were  used  for  the  war  dance.  The  brush  enclosure 
seen  at  Whiterocka  also  faced  east.  It  was  somewhat  larger,  the  diameter 
being  about  90  feet,1  the  height  was  in  part  above  six  feet,  but  at  other  spots 
not  more  than  five  feet.  In  the  rear,  about  three  feet  east  of  the  enclosure,. 
the  place  of  the  pit  was  taken  l>y  a  trench  about  five  feet  long,  two  and  a 
half  feel  wide,  and  one  foot  in  depth.  This  was  covered  with  a  wooden  box,. 
and  00  this  were  tin  sheets.  The  mound  was  strewn  with  several  notched 
wooden  Bticks  and  rasps  of  cattle  hone.  All  round  the  ground,  some 
distance  from  the  eirenmferenee,  there  were  the  traces  of  fires.  These,  my 
interpreter  explained,  had  served  t<>  illuminate  the  place  when  the  people 
danced  in  the  night. 

rl  ne  instruments,  of  which  several  specimens  actually  used  in  the  cere- 
mony were  seen  red,  are  illustrated  in  Pig.  2.  At  Whiterocks  my  interpreter 
said  that  one  end  ought  to  he  carved  into  the  head  of  a  mule,  horse,  bear  or 
rattlesnake  and  that  the  stick  should  he  daubed  all  over  with  red  or  yellowr 
paint.  At  Navaho  Springs  I  was  told  that  the  origin  of  the  notched  instru- 
ment is  ascribed  to  an  old  woman. 

At  Ignacio  "Ute  Jim"  is  considered  the  headman  of  the  ceremony, 
having  been  appointed  by  a  council  some  time  ago.2  He  sets  the  date  of 
the  performance  and  directs  the  erection  of  the  brush  fence;  he  also  appoints 
two  men  to  act  as  deputies.  These  men  carry  sticks.  Before  the  ceremony 
the  picture  of  a  bear  is  made  on  cloth  and  fastened  flag-fashion  to  a  tall 
staff,  which  is  set  in  the  rear  of  the  dance  ground  (Fig.  3).  Mrs.  Molineux, 
who  had  been  a  teacher  at  both  the  Uintah  Reservation  and  the  Ignacio 
School,  showed  me  a  picture  by  one  of  her  pupils,  in  which  a  tree  was  drawn 
in  the  center  of  the  entrance  to  the  dance  site.  Mrs.  Molineux  told  me  that 
a  sprig  is  really  planted  there  at  one  stage  of  the  performance  but  does  not 
remain  there  permanently. 

1  The  one  seen  by  Reed  was  still  larger,  from  100  to  150  ft.  in  diameter. 
*  Recently  some  of  the  young  men  wished  to  choose  someone  else  as  conductor  of  the 
Bear  dance. 


828 


Anthropological  Papers  American  Museum  of  Natural  History.  [Vol.  XI, 


*  According  to  my  Navaho  Springs  interpreter,  the  men  first  range  them- 
selves in  a  half-circle  on  the  north  side  of  the  ground,  while  the  women  form 
a  similar  arc  on  the  south  side.  Severo  (Ignacio)  described  a  different 
arrangement:  according  to  him,  there  were  two  half-circles  on  the  north 
and  south  side,  respectively,  but  in  each  arc  the  men  formed  the  western 
and  the  women  the  eastern  half.  The  women  invariably  were  the  ones  to 
choose  partners,  and  the  men  selected  by  them  are  obliged  to  accept  the  in- 
vitation.    If  a  man  refuses,  an  officer  lashes  him  with  a  willow.     Sometimes 


1 


Fig.  2a  (50.1-6971),  b  (50-1205a),  c  (50.1-7897a),  d  (50.1-6972),  e  (50.1-7897b),  / 
(50-1205b),  o  (50.1-6976),  h  (50.1-7896),  t  (50.1-6981),  j  (50.1-6974).  Notched  Sticks  and 
Rasps  used  as  Musical  Instruments  in  the  Ute  Bear  Dance,     e,  f,  g,  Rasps. 


a  woman  will  choose  one  of  the  musicians,  whose  place  must  then  be  taken 
by  some  other  man.  Dancers  receive  no  fee  from  their  partners.  In 
dancing  the  women  and  men  face  each  other  forming  two  straight  lines,  on 
the  east  and  west  side  respectively  (Fig.  4). 

According  to  Panayii's,  the  proper  old-style  method  is  to  start  the  first 
day's  performance  in  the  evening  and  continue  it  until  about  nine  o'clock; 
to  stop  at  about  ten  or  eleven  on  the  second  night;  about  twelve  or  one  on 
the  third ;  and  to  dance  throughout  the  fourth  night  until  about  one  or  two 
o'clock  in  the  afternoon  of  the  next  da  v.     On  the  Uintah  Reservation  all 


1915.]  Lowie,  Shoshone  Societies.  829 

the  Ute  come  to  camp  near  the  enclosure  on  the  last  day  of  the  ceremony. 
Towards  the  end  of  the  ceremony  a  crow  song  is  sung:  sanaqo  a'ri,  sanaqo  ari. 
Then  they  dance  in  single  pairs,  partners  holding  each  other,  while  on  the 
previous  days  the  two  rows  of  dancers  approached  each  other  (Fig.  5). 
The  step  consists  of  three  forward  and  two  backward  steps.  The  leaders 
warn  the  participants  to  take  care  lest  they  should  fall.  On  this  occasion 
friends  relieve  each  other  when  tired  out,  but  if  a  man  is  poor  and  has  no 
friend  he  gets  no  chance  to  rest  at  all.  Finally  one  dancer  falls,  or  pretends 
to  fall  down,  from  exhaustion,  and  the  dancing  ceases,  to  be  followed  by  a  big 
feast.  Jim  Duncan  (Whiterocks)  said  that  if  it  was  a  man  that  succumbed 
first  the  women  were  said  to  win,  and  vice  versa.  Mrs.  Molineux  told  me 
that  according  to  her  Uintah  informants  the  Bear  dance  was  formerly  con- 
nected with  an  exchange  of  wives,  but  I  obtained  no  corroborative  evidence 
on  this  point. 

There  is  an  important  rule  relating  to  the  falling  down  of  a  dancer; 
whether  it  applies  only,  or  particularly,  to  the  final  part  of  the  ceremony, 
I  do  not  know.  An  individual  finding  himself  in  the  plight  described  may 
not  rise  by  his  own  efforts  but  must  wait  for  one  of  the  musicians.  This 
musician  comes  with  a  notched  instrument,  places  it  on  each  foot,  each 
knee,  the  shoulders,  head  and  hack  of  the  person  on  the  ground,  rasps  it  over 
each  part  of  the  body  mentioned,  and  pronounces  words  to  this  effect:  "I 
want  you  to  enjoy  a  good  life  without  any  pain,  the  Bear  will  blow  it  away 
and  cure  you.  The  Bear  is  great  medicine  and  hears  what  I  am  saying." 
If  a  person  got  up  without  this  rite,  he  might  fall  sick. 

After  the  conclusion  of  the  Bear  dance  the  songs  appropriate  to  it  must 
not  be  sung,  lest  the  Bear  should  maltreat  the  singers. 

While  the  connection  of  the  ceremony  with  the  animal  from  which  it 
takes  its  current  name  is  clear  enough  from  the  foregoing,  it  is  brought 
out  even  more  forcibly  in  Reed's  account.  The  enclosure  itself,  according 
to  this  witness,  is  meant  to  represent  a  bear's  cave,  and  the  entrance  is 
toward  the  sunshine  because  bears  were  supposed  to  select  caves  with  regard 
to  their  opening  in  that  direction.  An  initial  song  by  the  musicians  is  meant 
to  transport  the  noise  made  in  the  pit  to  the  caves  of  the  bears  and  transform 
it  to  thunder,  which  partly  rouses  the  bears  from  their  winter  sleep  and 
each  day's  performance  symbolizes  their  gradual  restoration  from  hiberna- 
tion. Motions  of  the  arms  are  made  in  imitation  of  the  motion  the  bear 
makes  with  his  forepaws.  Women  choose  partners  because  the  female 
bear  chooses  her  mate.  At  the  close  of  the  ceremony  the  bears  are  supposed 
to  have  regained  all  their  faculties,  to  have  mated,  and  secured  food.  The 
spirit  of  the  final  feast,  which  follows  an  eighteen  hours'  fast,  is  supposed  to 
be  partly  wafted  away  to  the  forests,  where  it  is  believed  the  bears  feed  on  it. 


830 


Anthropological  Papers  American  Museum  of  Natural  History.  [Vol.  XI, 


v  While  gambling  is  tabooed  during  the  performance,  Mr.  Reed  describes 
the  ceremony  as  not  lacking  in  social  features.  More  particularly  is  it 
a  period  of  courtship  for  the  younger  people. 


Fig.  3. 


Fig.  4. 

Ute  Bear  Dance    at  Navaho  Springs,   Colorado.     The  musicians   (Fig.  3)    are  seated! 
their  round  pit.     Photo  by  Charles  D.  Wagner. 


Certain  rites  not  mentioned  by  any  of  my  witnesses  may  best  be  de- 
scribed in  Mr.  Reed's  words : — 

Several  times  during  the  progress  of  the  dance  messages  are  sent  to  the  Land' 
Beyond.    One  of  the  managers  waves  his  staff  for  silence,  and  then  a  chief  arises  and 


1915. 


Lowie,  Shoshone  Societies. 


831 


announces  the  rite.  The  men  stand  in  silence  on  one  side  of  the  inclosure,  the  women 
sit  mutely  on  the  other.  Then  a  bunch  of  corn-husks  for  cigarettes,  together  with  a 
bottle  of  tobacco,  are  handed  to  the  leader  of  the  musicians.  He  takes  the  husks  and 
tobacco  in  his  hand,  reverently  bows  his  head  and  repeats  an  incantation,  and  then 
rolls  a  cigarette,  passing  the  husks  and  tobacco  to  another  singer,  who  does  the  same. 
When  each  of  the  singers  has  rolled  a  cigarette,  all  heads  are  bowed  again,  there  is  a 
long  moment  of  absolute  silence,  and  then  the  words  of  an  incantation  are  repeated 
in  chorus  by  all  the  singers.  It  is  believed  that  the  words  of  the  incantation  are 
heard  in  the  sky,  and  that  the  shades  there  know  that  messages  are  to  be  sent  to  them 
from  some  of  their  mortal  brothers.  After  this  incantation  the  cigarettes  are  lighted 
and  a  few  puffs  blown  toward  the  sky,  it  being  believed  that  the  smoke  ascends  and 
provides  a  smoke  of  friendship  with  the  shades.     Then  the  particular  messages  are 


Fig. 


B  ;tr  Dido    at   N'avaho  Springs,  Colorado.     Photo  by  Charles  D.   Wui/ner. 


spoken,  the  speaker  bowing  his  head  as  he  talks,  and  all  the  others  maintaining  the 
most  rigid  silence  and  not  moving  in  their  places.  The  Indians  believe  that  any  one 
can,  with  the  aid  of  the  incantations  and  the  sacred  smoke,  send  messages  to  the  sky, 
but  that  answers  can  be  heard  only  by  medicine  men. 

Two  or  three  times  during  the  continuance  of  the  dance,  but  never  until  after 
the  first  day  has  passed,  a  handsomely  beaded  medicine  pipe,  filled  with  dried  kiniki- 
nik  leaves,  is  brought  into  the  inclosure,  lighted,  and  passed  from  one  man  to  another, 
each  taking  two  or  three  puffs,  rubbing  his  fingers  over  the  stem  of  the  pipe,  as 
though  it  were  a  flute,  and  then  handing  it  to  the  man  next  to  him.  This  ceremony 
is  to  show  affection  for  the  shades  by  providing  them  with  a  similar  smoke,  and  is 
an  important  medical  ceremony  as  well,  for  it  is  believed  that  it  protects  the  smokers 
from  pneumonia  and  consumption.  The  women  take  no  active  part  in  either  of  the 
smoking  ceremonies,  but  are  rapt  observers. 


832  Anthropological  Papers  American  Museum  of  Natural  History.  [Vol.  XI, 


Squaw  Dances. 

I  observed  part  of  a  squaw  dance  on  the  Uintah  Reservation,  said  to  be 
of  recent  and  alien  origin.  The  men  do  not  stand  between  the  women,  but 
all  the  participants  of  either  sex  stand  together,  jointly  forming  a  single 
circle.  In  dancing  they  moved  clockwise,  crossing  the  right  foot  over  the 
left,  then  slowly  dragging  the  left  foot  after.  There  was  no  musical  instru- 
ment, the  performers  dancing  in  accompaniment  to  songs  sung  by  them- 
selves.    At  Ignacio  I  saw  a  squaw  dance  of  the  usual  type.1 

Jim  Duncan  (Whiterocks)  told  me  of  another  dance,  of  which  he  did  not 
know  the  name,  in  which  men  and  women  joined  hands.  He  said  it  was 
usually  performed  in  the  fall,  but  occasionally  at  other  seasons.  It  may 
possibly  be  identical  with  the  tawani'qai,  Daylight  Dance,  of  which  I  heard 
in  Ignacio.  Men  and  women  formed  a  ring  in  the  daytime  and  danced 
without  any  music  but  their  own  singing. 

Another  dance  in  which  men  and  women  took  part  was  the  tomu'gani'- 
kaTa  (tomu'gweni'kap1).  It  was  held  only  in  the  night.  The  men  all 
stamped  their  feet  vigorously,  and  this  feature  is  said  to  be  expressed  in 
the  name  of  the  performance.  The  men  and  women  formed  a  ring  to  dance. 
They  sang,  but  there  was  no  drumming.  When  through,  the  performers 
all  fell  down  on  the  ground,  piling  on  top  of  one  another  for  fun.  The  words 
of  their  song  meant :  "  Now,  that  woman  is  very  anxious  to  mate,  but  now 
we  have  pretty  nearly  done  and  she  can  have  her  wish." 

Men  and  women  also  joined  in  a  dance  called  tcinuan'kaTa.  Old  persons 
started  it.  There  were  no  drums,  only  gourd-rattles.  The  young  people 
fastened  rattling  objects  to  their  clothes.  This,  as  well  as  the  preceding 
dance,  might  be  performed  at  any  time  of  the  year. 

In  the  Deer-Hoof  Rattle  dance  (tasi  tcuni'kap)  from  two  to  four  old 
men  had  sticks  about  eight  feet  long  and  covered  with  buckskin,  to  the 
top  of  which  deer  or  antelope  hoofs  were  attached  for  rattles.  When  the 
dance  had  been  announced,  the  people  gathered  in  the  place  mentioned. 
Then  the  musicians  began  to  sing  a  distinctive  song.  A  woman  would 
begin  to  dance,  then  some  man  came  and  put  his  arm  round  her;  if  he  put 
his  arm  round  her  neck,  the  crowd  called  out  to  him  to  encircle  her  waist. 
Sometimes  two  women  began  to  dance  together,  then  one  man  would  act  as 
partner  to  both  of  them.  Only  a  few  people  danced  at  the  same  time,  but 
anyone  might  dance  who  so  wished.  The  performers  merely  moved  up  and 
down  without  change  of  position.     If  any  of  them  failed  to  keep  time,  the 

»  See  Ixmie,  (e),  p.  206. 


1915.]  Lovrie,  Shoshone  Societies.  833 

musicians  prodded  their  ears  with  the  rattle-sticks.  This  dance  was  not 
confined  to  any  particular  season  of  the  year. 

In  the  kwinu'inikai  (kwinu'ni'kara)  the  musicians,  who  were  all  men, 
also  used  deer-hoof  rattles,  according  to  Panayu's,  but  the  sticks  were  from 
one  to  six  feet  in  length.  In  addition  they  had  a  drum,  on  each  side  of  which 
the  men  lined  up  in  a  row.  The  women  asked  old  men  to  sing  for  them, 
then  they  danced,  jumping  up  and  down,  and  taking. turns  at  different  songs. 
Only  women  took  part,  the  old  ones  acting  as  leaders.  This  performance 
always  took  place  after  dinner,  and  might  be  followed  by  the  Dog  dance. 

In  the  Dog  dance  (sarl'nikai)  the  women  chose  men  partners.  If  a  man 
danced  by  himself,  the  women  would  come  over  and  dance  with  him. 
The  men  sometimes  covered  their  partners  with  blankets  and,  thus  covered, 
kissed  them.  They  merely  danced  up  and  down.  At  sunset  the  perform- 
ance ceased. 

War  Dances. 

The  to'n'kanam  was  a  preparation  dance,  performed  by  men  about  to 
set  out  on  a  war  party.  They  took  off  all  their  clothes  except  for  the  gee- 
Btring,  and  carried  weapons.  The  women  watched  to  see  who  was  going 
against  the  enemy  and  also  sang.     Drums  were  beaten  for  music. 

After  having  slain  an  enemy  and  returned  from  war  the  braves  would 
dance  naked  round  a  scalp  attached  to  a  high  pole.  Only  the  men  took 
part.  This  performance  was  called  'a'sin'kap.  It  was  distinct  from  the 
Shield  dance,  tapu  ni'kami,  in  which  the  women  danced  with  the  scalps, 
their  leaders  sometimes  wearing  war-bonnets  and  carrying  shields  or  spears. 

There  was  once  a  performance  known  as  nini  +  ewi  eo.  After  singing 
and  drumming  all  night  while  out  on  the  warpath,  some  Ute  Indians  would 
slowly  approach  a  famous  warrior  and  suddenly  awake  him  by  hallooing. 
One  of  their  number  was  painted  and  dressed  up  as  in  war.  When  the 
sleeper  had  been  roused,  they  thus  addressed  him:  "We  have  heard  that 
you  are  a  brave  man.  You  saved  your  life,  however  you  were  brave  enough 
to  attack  and  kill  an  enemy."  Then  they  have  some  music  and  dance. 
The  warrior  gives  a  gun,  horse,  or  some  other  property  to  the  visitors,  who 
proceed  from  one  distinguished  warrior  to  another,  everywhere  collecting 
gifts. 

The  modern  social  dance  commonly  called  War  dance  (ta  +  uxan'kai) 
apparently  does  not  differ  from  the  Grass  dance  as  found  among  the  Plains 
Indians,  except  that  it  seems  to  lack  all  the  more  serious  features.  It 
alternates  with  the  squaw  dance. 


834  Anthropological  Papers  American  Museum  of  Natural  History.  [Vol.  XI, 


Panatsuniqai. 

Sometimes  in  the  night  people  would  get  a  hide,  beat  it,  and  proceed 
singing  from  one  tipi  to  another.  This  was  called  panatsuni'qai  (panatcuni'- 
kap).  They  advanced  towards  a  headman's  tipi,  and  one  member  of  the 
party  would  go  ahead,  peep  in,  and  might  find  old  men  seated  there  smoking. 
Then  he  would  report:  "They  are  smoking  over  there."  Then  the  proces- 
sion went  to  the  spot,  and  stopped.  The  old  men  filled  a  pipe,  made  the 
singers  sit  down  and  gave  them  to  smoke.  When  they  had  done,  they 
performed  a  round  dance,  after  which  they  went  away  to  sleep. 

The  above  account  was  obtained  at  Whiterocks.  An  Ignacio  informant 
said  that  both  men  and  women  took  part  in  this  dance,  which  lasted  at  least 
until  midnight.  He  seemed  to  connect  with  this  performance  another  called 
"doubling  up,"  nawa'to'kwabini'ka'.  This  was  characterized  by  both 
men  and  women  lining  up  in  facing  rows  as  in  the  Bear  dance,  but  hand- 
drums  were  used.  Both  sides  took  a  few  steps  forward,  then  each  woman 
got  between  two  men  she  liked. 

What  seems  the  same,  or  at  least  a  related,  performance  was  also  de- 
scribed by  one  informant  under  the  caption  ganl  ya  uwi  +  ev,  Long  Village. 
At  night  while  men  were  assembled  smoking  in  a  chief's  house,  a  party  of 
young  men  and  women  would  gather  and  proceed  thither  as  quietly  as  pos- 
sible. One  of  the  men  in  the  procession  opened  the  door,  and  all  gave  the 
war  whoop.  Then  they  began  a  song  and  dance  just  outside  the  lodge. 
The  chief  and  his  guests  were  asked  for  a  smoke.  After  three  or  four  songs 
the  headman  of  the  dancers  said  to  his  followers  while  they  were  still  danc- 
ing, "You  know  how  hard  the  skin  from  the  neck  of  animals  is,  that  is  how 
those  men  inside  are."  This  meant  that  they  did  not  readily  yield  a  smoke. 
Finally,  however,  they  would  relent,  the  chief  handing  a  pipe  to  the  leader 
of  the  procession  who  smoked  and  passed  it  on  to  his  companions.  This 
performance  was  repeated  at  other  lodges  and  finally  a  dance  was  held  in  a 
suitable  place. 

Horse  Parade. 

Just  before  sunrise  a  headman  would  announce :  "  Everyone  shall  mount 
a  horse  and  take  a  drum  to  sing  with  on  horseback!"  Then  all  proceeded 
in  this  fashion  round  the  camp.  The  headman  then  said,  "Come  to  my 
house,  let  all  gather  there."  When  all  had  assembled,  they  decorated  them- 
selves with  different  kinds  of  paint  and  had  a  dance,  possibly  on  the  after- 
noon of  the  same  day,  the  Lame  dance,  sankini'qap1.     In  this  both  men  and 


1915.]  Lowie,  Shoshone  Societies.  835 

women  limped  around,  one  behind  another.  There  were  two  parallel  rows, 
but  one  would  cross  the  other  in  the  course  of  the  dance.  The  sexes  were 
not  divided  by  these  rows.  After  the  dance  all  scattered  to  go  home.  Then 
someone  might  announce:  "There  will  be  another  dance,  the  quni'n'- 
qawa  nl."  In  this  dance  the  performers  moved  round  with  an  up-and-down 
hop. 

Possibly  a  different  type  of  parade  was  described  under  the  name  of 
ka/wirnkqanam.  All  the  men  lined  up  on  horseback,  and  the  women  also 
mounted,  forming  a  line  behind.  A  man  wearing  a  war-bonnet  and  some- 
times carrying  a  shield  or  spear  was  leader  and  would  go  from  one  end  of  the 
procession  to  the  other.  He  rode  a  horse  that  had  been  painted  up  and  had 
its  tail  wrapped  with  red  cloth.  Sometimes  there  were  as  many  as  three 
of  these  leaders.  The  musicians  had  hand-drums  and  occupied  the  center 
of  the  men's  line.  The  women  all  sang  in  chorus.  Sometimes  the  men 
struck  their  guns  with  ramrods  to  beat  time.  In  parading  they  would 
discharge  their  guns  into  the  ;iir.  After  a  while,  the  leader  or  chief  delivered 
a  speech  in  a  very  loud  voice  then  they  paraded  again.  Finally  the  men 
arranged  themselves  in  single  file,  headed  by  the  chief,  who  galloped  to 
camp,  followed  by  the  rest,  the  women  bringing  up  the  rear.  Sometimes 
a  ring  was  formed  by  the  riders  and  a  performance  of  the  Dog  dance  took 
place  within  this  space,  though  it  was  not  necessarily  connected  with  the 
parade. 


(Continued  from   2d   p.    of  cover.) 

Volume  XII. 

I.     String-figures  from  the  Patomana  Indians  of  British  Guiana.     By  Frank 
E.  Lutz.     Pp.  1-14,  and  12  text  figures.     1912.     Price,  $.25. 
II.     (In  preparation.) 

Volume  XIII. 

I.     Social  Life  and  Ceremonial  Bundles  of  the  Menomini  Indians.     By  Alan- 
son  Skinner.     Pp.  1-165,  and  30  text  figures.     1913.     Price,  $1.50. 
II.     (In  preparation.) 

Volume  XIV. 

I.     The  Stefdnsson-Anderson  Arctic  Expedition  of  the  American  Museum: 
Preliminary  Ethnological  Report.     By  Yilhjahnur  Stefdnsson.     Pp.  1-376,  94  text 
figures,  and  2  maps.     1914.     Price,  $3.50. 
II.     (In  preparation.) 

Volume  XV. 

I.     Pueblo  Ruins  of  the  Galisteo  Basin,  New  Mexico.     By  N.  C.  Nelson. 
Pp.  1-124,  Plates  1-1,  19  text  figures,  1  map,  and  7  plans.     1914.     Price  $.75. 


il 

EDWARDW.\ 


